NID DAT Counselling 2026 (B.Des & M.Des): Dates, Seat Allotment, Admission Process

The National Institute of Design is slated to begin the NID B.Des Seat Allotment Rounds in the last week of May 2026 for the B.Des Programme and in the first week of May 2026 for the M.Des Programme. NID Counselling is conducted in rounds. There may be two or three rounds of seat allocation. NID Counselling 2026 will begin once the NID DAT Mains 2026 Result for B.Des and M.Des has been declared.

Candidates assigned a seat must affirm it by paying non-refundable token fees and uploading the required documents.

NID DAT Counselling Procedure 2026

The steps below provide a detailed explanation of the Counselling Procedure.

Step 1: Check Your Qualifying Status

To attend the NID DAT Counselling, you must have passed the NID DAT exam. The qualifying status can be determined by logging into the NID DAT result portal.

Step 2: Submit Campus Preference (Only for B.Des applicants)

Candidates for the Bachelor of Design must submit their preferred campuses. The entries must be in order of priority. Note that if no options are chosen, the candidate may be rejected. The candidate will be prompted to choose a campus based on:

• Seat availability based on NID and DAT merit ranking.
• M.Des candidates do not need to submit campus choices.

Step 3: Seat Allocation

Seats will be allotted based on seat intake, candidate merit rank, campus preferences, and category. Once a seat has been allocated, the candidate must confirm it by:

Paying the applicable non-refundable seat acceptance fee.

To proceed, provide the required documentation and pay the non-refundable seat confirmation costs. General, Gen EWS, OBC-NCL, SC, ST, and PwD candidates must pay INR 30,000 (online) plus any relevant convenience fees. INR 75,000 (online payment) + convenience costs (if applicable) for overseas candidates.

Uploading Documents

The following documents must be uploaded as a single PDF file with a maximum file size of 10 MB.

• A valid photo ID (Aadhaar card, Election ID, PAN card, driver's license, or passport)
• Required documents include a birth certificate or school leaving certificate, as well as a Gen-EWS, OBC-NCL, ST, or ST certificate (if applicable).
• PwD certificate (if relevant)
• Passport (if applied under the Supernumerary category)
• Class 10 Marksheet
• Class 12 Marksheet

Step 4: Document Verification

All documents uploaded by candidates will be cross-checked with the information provided during online registration. If a discrepancy is discovered, the candidate will be disqualified.

Step 5: Provisional Offer Issuance Letter for Admission

Provisional Offer Letters of Admission will be sent to candidates when their documents have been verified. The candidate must now pay the NIDs directly; payment-related information will be given to the candidate. The provisional offer letter for B.Des will be issued in the second week of June 2026, and for M.Des in the third week of May 2026.

Also Read: NID DAT Tie Breaking Policy for B.Des Admissions 2026: How It Works?

NID DAT Counselling Key Dates 2026

Check out the key dates for NID DAT counselling in the table below.

Tentative Date(s)	Course	Event Description
May ' 26	M.Des	Round 1 Seat Allotment Starts
May ' 26	B.Des	NID DAT 2026 (Mains) Exam Result
May ' 26	B.Des	Rechecking Window
May ' 26	B.Des/M.Des	Window for Submission of Campus Preferences
May ' 26	M.Des	Provisional Offer Letter: Round 1
May ' 26	B.Des	Round 1: Deadline for Fee Payment & Document Upload
May ' 26	B.Des	Round 1 Seat Allotment Starts
May ' 26 - Jun ' 26	M.Des	Round 2: Seat Allotment, Payment of Tuition Fees of Semester-I for Seat Confirmation & Document Upload
Jun ' 26	M.Des	Provisional Offer Letter: Round 2
Jun ' 26	B.Des	Provisional Offer Letter (Round 1 or General)
Jun ' 26	B.Des	Provisional Offer Letter (Repeat Entry)
Jun ' 26	B.Des	Payment of Remaining Semester Fee
Jun ' 26	B.Des	Seat Allotment Round 2
Jun ' 26	B.Des	Provisional Offer of Admissions of Round 02

Also Read: What is a Good Score in NID DAT 2026? B,.Des and M.Des Scores, Steps to Calculate

NID DAT Seat Allotment 2026

The National Institute of Design allocates seats based on the following parameters:

• NID DAT 2026 Merit Rank
• Seat intake for the applied program.
• The candidate's preferred discipline as indicated on the NID DAT 2026 counselling form.
• Category of the candidate

NID B.Des. Seat Matrix (Institute-wise)

The table below shows the seat matrix for NID DAT B.Des.

Institute	Total Seats (Expected)	GEN-EWS (10%)	OBC-NCL (27%)	Scheduled Caste (SC) (15%)	Scheduled Tribe (ST) (7.5%)
NID Ahmedabad	125	13	34	19	9
NID Andhra Pradesh	75	8	20	11	6
NID Haryana	75	8	20	11	6
NID Madhya Pradesh	75	8	20	11	6
NID Assam	75	8	20	11	6
Total	425	45	114	63	33

NID M.Des. Seat Matrix (Institute-wise)

The table below shows the seat matrix for NID DAT M.Des.

S.No	NID Campus	Seat Intake (Expected)
1	NID Ahmedabad	126
2	NID Gandhinagar	126
3	NID Bengaluru	95
	Total Intake	347

Also Read: Tips & Tricks to Score Well in NID DAT Exam for Design Courses 2026

Summary

The NID DAT Counselling for B.Des and M.Des is the final, fully online stage of the admission process, conducted after the declaration of the NID DAT Mains results. It involves multiple rounds of seat allotment based strictly on final merit rank, campus/discipline preference, and category reservation.